Lower Pottsgrove police warn phone scam can lead to hacked computers

LOWER POTTSGROVE — Township police are warning the public about a phone scam in which a caller tells residents their computer is malfunctioning so they can get access to the victims’ computer accounts.

Police said they have taken two separate reports over the past week from elderly residents. The residents told police they received a call from a man with a foreign accent and the caller ID reflected a Pennsylvania number, police said. The residents were told they had a computer problem and needed to log into their account, police said. The residents denied the caller access to their computer and didn’t become victims, police said.

Police said these scams can lead to the caller gaining remote access to a computer which can lead to the theft of financial account information and stolen identities. Police said anybody who receives a similar call should immediately hang up the phone and report the activity to their local police.